If you plan on being at Readercon 27 this weekend and hope to bump into me, there’s one more thing you need to know beyond what I’ve already told you—an item has been added to my schedule.

So if you’d like to get up close and personal, check out my Kaffeeklatsch timing below.

Thursday, July 7, 8:30 PM
Reading
I will read “The Man Without the Blue Balloon and the Woman Who Had Smiles Only for Him” … unless I see the audience filled with people who already heard me read an excerpt during Balticon.

Friday, July 8, 2:00 p.m.
Challenging the Coercive Muse
All writers have seen, and many have said, variations on the theme of “I write because I can’t not write.” Something mercilessly drives us to put words on the page even when we find the act of writing difficult, unpleasant, or onerous. If the muse were a real person who existed outside of the writer’s mind, we would call this behavior coercion and find it deeply troubling (as Stephen King so aptly depicted in Misery). In this open discussion, we will challenge the idea that our muses must necessarily be bullies, and explore other ways of experiencing and responding to creative urges and getting through the hardest parts of writing while valuing and prioritizing our own consent and happiness.
with Maria Dahvana Headley (leader), Marissa Lingen, Kate Maruyama, Gregory Wilson

Friday, July 8, 5:00 p.m.
Non-Explanation in Fiction
“Never complain, never explain,” said the Lady Mendl, and “Fuck the exposition,” said David Simon, “just be,” but as Junot Díaz said, “Motherfuckers will read a book that’s one third Elvish, but put two sentences in Spanish and they think we’re taking over.” What are the pleasures of writing for an audience that already gets it—and the dangers of assuming they’ll understand? What can you get from reading works that don’t cater specifically to you? And how can refusing to spell it out bring depth to the fantastic?
with John Chu, Kameron Hurley, Kenneth Schneyer (leader), Ann Tonsor Zeddies

Saturday, July 9, 12:00 p.m.
Kaffeeklatsch
with Keffy Kehrli

I hope to see you there!